For years now the harvest has been less than it should be. Last year the people of Oisin's village sacrificed a goat, but their god did not come. Now, in desperation, a human sacrifice has been suggested, and Oisin, recently orphaned and feeling life is not worth living, volunteers. But the god Belinos is not quite what he seems, and Oisin's sacrifice will not be what he expects, for Belinos first came out of the darkness to drink the sacrificial blood not because he was a god, but because he was a vampire. This is just the beginning of the changes to Oisin's life, as he is drawn further and further into a world of gods and magic, where the most unexpected thing is not even his own blossoming talent, but the blossoming feelings he has for Belinos. Love between mortal and immortal is not without its difficulties, though. As outright war among the gods threatens, Oisin will end up making a far greater difference in the conflict than he could ever have dreamed possible.

The Sacrifice

He’d spent a lot of time alone in his life. Despite coming from a massive family, he’d been the youngest, and so his siblings had all been occupied with different things. By the time he’d been independent enough to not need constant care the older ones were all married, and the younger were busy with working the farm, so he’d been left to his own devices often. He’d soon had work as well, of course, but he’d always been the smallest, the clumsiest, the least capable.


He sighed softly. Truth be told he didn’t miss his family all that much. His father’s death, still only weeks past, had sent him spiraling into despair largely because of what could now never be, rather than who had been lost.


His father was dead, and so he could never earn his father’s approval.


Chapter 13